The silence in the room was deafening, as the implications of Dr. Barnaby's words were sinking in.
Dr. Barnaby stood slowly. He looked pale and exhausted, about to fall apart. He leaned against the massive conference room table with a wrinkled, trembling hand, trying to maintain his balance. "This company has been my life. It's supposed to be my legacy, and my retirement income. All my life I have held my head high, and I have been proud of my work, but now I don't know anymore. If we can't sort out and fix this mess, I am finished."
Alex could hear her heart rhythm escalating to a deafening beat, while her panicked thoughts were racing. This is my first case? Oh, God… Where do I even start?
…25
A pile of blue file folders were scattered on the conference room table. A large binder caught Alex's eye, the one that had "NANOLANCE" written in black, bold marker across the front cover. It contained a brief history of the company, key dates, milestones and events in its recent history, financial results going back ten years, staff and client lists, and other various data that Dr. Barnaby had deemed useful for their initial review.
Alex picked that single binder and set it aside. She already knew most of the numbers in there, at the end of a sleepless night, powered by multiple trips to the coffee machine.
She pulled the rest of the file folders in front of her and opened the first one.
Angela Prescott, Vice President, Human Resources. Graduated with honors from San Francisco State University and held a master's degree in organizational development. The woman in the picture looked sure of herself, somewhat proud, smiling with confidence. A beautiful face with harmonious features, dark brown eyes, and wavy brown hair combed back, showing a large forehead with almost no wrinkles on it. Nice to meet you, Alex thought, while continuing to read. Her file indicated she was 47 years old and had been with the company for almost 15 years. Handwritten notes described a top performing human resources practitioner and an excellent leader and praised management initiatives she had implemented and organizational development initiatives she had led. Alex gave the photo one more look and moved to the next folder.
Dustin Sheppard, Chief Technology Officer. Graduated with honors from California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in 1992; majored in science. He had significant course work and achievements in software development, and was published in science journals. The man in the photo was still attractive, yet cold and somewhat unfriendly. Completely bald and clean-shaven, he had a sharp appearance enhanced by a black shirt and self-assured attitude, radiating strength of a dangerous kind. He had the "all business" demeanor; he seemed efficient, focused, and procedural. The man who never smiles, Alex thought, moving to the next file.
Benjamin Walker, Chief Operating Officer. Master of business administration (MBA), here was another executive dressed all in black, at least when the photos attached to his file were taken, another man who didn't ever seem to smile. Relatively handsome, but with ice-cold eyes and a reserved, yet vigilant mien, his appearance was that of a feline predator hiding in the shadows. Interesting specimen, Alex thought, closing Walker's folder.
Chandler Griffiths, Chief Sales Officer. Another MBA, this degree was built on top of a bachelor's degree in marketing. He was the youngest executive so far — pure breed Ivy League, pale, with a fine moustache, and determined eyes. There was not a hair on his head either, most likely shaven clean to hide a receding hairline. Hair doesn't seem to last long around here, Alex thought. Chandler seemed all business, but in a different manner from Sheppard. He was less threatening. Alex could easily picture him selling to government agencies, discussing new technologies and research grants. His entire being radiated determination to succeed, a great attribute for a sales leader.
Alex opened the last folder in the pile.
Audrey Kramer, Chief Financial Officer. MBA and Certified Management Accountant. Here was the oldest executive on the team. She had a smiling face with tired eyes, and shoulder-length hair, bleached blond to cover the gray. Her roots were showing slightly, just enough to tell the story. Her picture revealed pale skin, somewhat wrinkled, which made sense for her age, well into her fifties. She seemed to have the coolness and mental power to lead the finances of such a complex operation through all kinds of hard times. Dressed in black. What else is new?
Alex sighed and closed the last folder. She picked up the pile of folders and headed toward Tom's office, where the others were waiting for her to finish her review. This morning they were meeting for a brainstorming session. They wanted to take a look at the initial facts, then analyze and speculate on the causes and effects stemming from these. With a little bit of luck, she hoped to leave the session armed with some ideas and directions to help her get started on the right path.
Tom's office door was wide open. He was comfortably leaning back in his leather chair, engulfed in the refined smoke of a cigar. Steve was standing by the open window, his features lit by the warm, spring sun. He was playing with the sunrays, casting shadows with the tip of his shoe on the various areas of the carpet pattern, deeply emerged in his activity.
"I'm done," Alex said, "want me to close the door?"
Tom nodded yes. "Any conclusions?" he asked.
"No, nothing so far."
"Alex, give us a summary, please," Steve said, moving away from the sunlit carpet near the window, in favor of a chair, closer to Tom's desk.
"All right. So, this is what we know," Alex started, pulling up her notes. "There are five senior executives on Dr. Barnaby's team. There are hundreds of employees, 932 to be exact. I've reviewed in detail the files on the senior leadership team. There is nothing obvious in the personnel files to account for any of the complaints."
"How about your gut? What does your gut tell you?" Tom asked.
She searched his eyes, a bit hesitant.
"Always look at things from all perspectives. While reviewing those personnel records, who did you like and who did you not like? That is how your gut speaks to you. Which one of those people would you invite into your home? With whom would you leave your kid?
"Definitely I like Dr. Barnaby, I would have to say, although I know he is not the subject of this," Alex replied without thinking.
"Yes, but you might also be correct. Your gut gave you a piece of information right there: probably none of these executives measure up to Dr. Barnaby. Who's your next favorite?"
"That would be Chandler Griffiths, sales," Alex said, flipping though her files.
"And next?"
"I am hesitant between Kramer and Prescott, finance and human resources respectively."
"So you did not like any of the two front-runners? That is interesting. Could you tell us why?"
"I'm not exactly sure," Alex said. "They're both highly commended, have a lot of experience, and have exceptional credentials, so there are no valid rational reasons for this preference. I guess it's just my gut."